By Chioma Umeha
To raise awareness
of the importance of vaccination in reducing child mortality and renew efforts
around universal vaccination coverage, the World Health Organisation Regional
Office for Africa (WHO AFRO) launched the eighth African Vaccination Week (AVW)
weekend. Vaccination can save children’s lives, and keep adults, communities
and nations, healthy. One in five African children still lacks access to all
the necessary and basic vaccinations.
AVW 2018 builds on
the January 2017 Heads of State endorsement of the Addis Declaration on
Immunization (ADI), a historic pledge to ensure that everyone in Africa receives the full benefits of
immunization. To support Member State implementation of the ADI, a roadmap has
been developed in close collaboration with WHO AFRO and EMRO, the African Union
Commission and immunization partners. The roadmap provides Member States with
specific strategies that can be incorporated into existing efforts to improve
immunization.
In Abuja, Nigeria,
celebrations were organised by the Community Health and Research Initiative
(CHR) to raise awareness on the importance of vaccination and commitment for
adequate finances to Immunisation.
At a breakfast
meeting on the April
20, 2018 to commemorate the AVW in Abuja, Dr Faisal Shuaib the Executive
Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency gave the
assurance of the federal government readiness to fully implement strategies on
Routine Immunization and
Primary Health Cate System Strengthening’ with the sole aim to achieve 85 per
cent coverage by the year 2028.
The Honourable
Minister of State for Health Dr Osagie Ehenire in the same meeting also
emphasized that “we as a nation must create a road map to reach the desired
destination and Routine immunisation has to be Routine immunization all over
the country as prevention is not only better than cure, but cost-effective.”
CHR Director Operations and Finance Mr. Salisu Musa calls on the
Nigerian leaders to improve leadership management, accountability and pay more
attention to low performing states as well as ensure adequate Immunization
finances in the budget and its timely releases.
